“We’re here for one reason: to rock all your asses!” So shouted the self-proclaimed “Maharaja of Soul,” King Khan himself, who strolled gallantly onto the stage at the Mohawk on Friday night with the kind of radiant aura only found in a truly great showman. Adorned in a shimmering purple shirt and a crown-like hat made of the finest feathers, King Khan was most certainly a showman. Given that Austin was the first stop on their extensive summer tour, King Khan and his worldly band the Shrines were fired up and ready to go.
If you’ve followed the career of King Khan you are aware of his back and forth work between his two bands BBQ Show and the Shrines. Both projects are equally awesome for different reasons, and whereas BBQ Show tends to gravitate towards a garage-y punk sound, the Shrines are all funk, soul and dirty rock ‘n’ roll. Much like James Brown, one of his biggest influences no doubt, King Khan’s ability and talent as a front man comes not just in his performances, but also in the musicians he chooses to back him up. In the case of the Shrines, who may dress in unison but hail from the likes of Germany and France among other places, Khan has himself one of the tightest rhythm sections around who also happen to each possess a distinctive personality both musically and entertainment wise.
For over ninety minutes King Khan and the Shrines charged through a set consisting of songs off their acclaimed 2013 release Idle No More (Merge Records) and older works, playing each song with the kind of explosive intensity most bands reserve for an encore. King Khan fed off an audience determined to mimic his every dance move while his band mates offered up their own synchronized moves to further compliment the dynamite front man rocking the spotlight. Sleazy sax and a slinky, rollicking organ sound layered over an incessantly groovy drumbeat made it possible to picture the Shrines blowing the roof off of a smoky inner city nightclub in the 60s, or perhaps rocking the infamous basement toga party scene from Animal House.
Countless bands do their best to replicate or offer their own “revivalist” take on music of the past, and the majority of them fail to do so without sounding hokey and cliché. This is what makes King Khan and the Shrines such an exceptional act. With their blend of soul, funk, R&B, and raw rock ‘n’ roll from previous eras, the band manages to create music that is authentically retro yet doesn’t suffer from being a simple copy of what’s already been done. Most importantly, they make music with real soul, something that is sadly missing from much of modern music.
At the Mohawk King Khan and the Shrines oozed this very soul as they tossed instruments, got sweaty, and kept a nearly sold out audience gyrating wildly to every second of the music. By the time the band left the stage they had accomplished exactly what they set out to do: rock our asses. If their Friday tour opener is any indication of future shows to come, lovers of soul and fans of King Khan and the Shrines are going to have one hell of a summer.
